


Candyman

by kathrynactually



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Carnival, Festivals, M/M, kind of, the oc is not a jerk, the other boys are there but only Niall is mentioned by name
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-27
Updated: 2018-01-27
Packaged: 2019-03-10 01:32:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,363
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13494002
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kathrynactually/pseuds/kathrynactually
Summary: Louis is on a boring date and Harry crashes it.Based on a tumblr prompt I saw a few months ago about two people going to a carnival.





	Candyman

Louis doesn’t know how he ended up on this date.

Well, he does. It’s Niall’s fault, really.

Louis hasn’t really been keen about dating recently, but at the same time, he’s been lonely and tends to complain about it quite a bit when around Niall. He wouldn’t normally be so vocal about his loneliness, but in recent weeks, wherever there’s Niall, there’s alcohol.

Should probably make sure that Niall’s a healthy uni student alcoholic and not an actual alcoholic, but the point for right now is that Louis is often drinking around Niall and spilling his feelings.

After listening to Louis cry all night about how he just wants someone to cuddle with, Niall took it upon himself to set Louis up on a date with one of the few other gay guys he knows.

The date, Trevor, is probably a nice guy. He just doesn’t click with Louis and this date has been like the physical representation of the sound of nails dragging against a chalkboard. That probably doesn’t make sense, but neither does this date.

The main issue is that Trevor doesn’t seem to be able to tell that this date is going awful.

There is a festival going on in the city with rides and games and a bunch a different booths and honestly, it’s a little hard to fuck up a date that include playing carny games, but here they are. The conversation has consisted of the classes they’re each taking this semester, a little bit a what their home life is like, and literally, the weather.

It seems like Trevor thinks everything going okay cause the conversation has kept going, but this is like going on a date with Louis’s mum’s best friend’s sister. It doesn’t really make a difference.

Louis’s just about to call it a night and cut his losses when Trevor pulls him towards another game booth.

“Look, Louis, this one looks pretty simple. All you have to do is throw the darts at the balloons, simple enough.” Trevor turns to the lady running the booth, “What’s the cost and how many do I have to hit?”

She smiles at them, “Five pounds for five darts. You pop one balloon, you get any prize on the lowest shelf. Three balloons and anything from the middle shelf. If all five darts pop a balloon, you get one of the hanging prizes.”

Louis looks at the prizes consisting of small trinkets on the bottom shelf, regular size stuffed animals above that, and huge stuffed animals above that. Louis would die if Trevor somehow popped all five and tried giving Louis some huge stuffed animal.

Louis lives in a small two bedroom apartment. He doesn’t need some stuffed animal from a guy he no doubt will not be going on a second date with.

Trevor glances at Louis before giving the lady behind the booth five pounds and getting five dart in return. Louis watches and tries not to let out a sigh of relief when Trevor misses the first time.

After that, Louis turns and leans against the low counter, glancing around the festival. There’s some kind of music thing going on, but Louis has been out of the city the past two weeks, so he wasn’t here for any of the promotion going on around campus.

He watches a girl and guy sit at a table under a tent as they eat. They’re obviously on a date and they’re smiling and laughing and as Louis looks down, he sees that their ankles are crossed beneath the table. It smiles at seeing two people happy with each other, but can’t help the feeling of jealousy that washes over him.

“Dang it!” Louis turns back to see Trevor now only has two darts left and hasn’t hit any balloons.

Louis shrugs, “It’s okay, Trevor. I’d probably only hit one, if any. These games aren’t meant to be easy. Even if you hit the balloon, they’re so lightly blown up, it’s not likely it’d pop.”

Trevor looks back at him, “I want to win you something to keep as a souvenir from our first date.” And only date.

Louis nods, but doesn’t reply with his rude thoughts.

He continues looking around and spots a pair of green eyes looking right back at him.

Normally, someone would turn away upon being caught staring, but this man looks Louis up and down and smirks when they remake eye contact.

Louis takes in his face with his high cheekbones and strong jawline. A wide nose, not unusually wide, but wide nonetheless, and a high forehead. His hair waves in most places but it looks like it’s trying to curl up in some places, like there must be some product in it keeping it light. Even with product, there are curls near the bottom in perfect coils. With a smirk currently on his face, everything is a little uneven, mainly his lips. Louis’s eyes stay on is lips probably a little longer than necessary, but honestly, who cares? Certainly not this man with the way he’s staring right back at Louis. Weird features but somehow, this is most definitely the most gorgeous man Louis has ever and will ever see in his entire life.

Louis only remembers he’s currently on a date with someone else when hears Trevor slam down another five pounds, causing Louis to jump.

Louis turns to him, “Trevor, I really don’t need anything. There’s no need to spend ten pounds just trying to get some silly token.”

The women running the booth speaks up before Trevor, “Oh, sweetheart, he’s at twenty pounds. Where’ve you been the last ten minutes?”

Louis’s eyebrows shoot up and he turns to Trevor who is at least blushing as he replies, “You were so dazed off, I was hoping you wouldn’t notice.”

Louis runs his hand down his face and turns the lady, “Don’t take anymore money from him.” Then he turns to Trevor, “One more shot. That’s it. After this we’re going to move on from here.”

Trevor nods and then turns to miss his first dart.

Louis tries to pay attention and not think about the guy he just spent a good few minutes eye-fucking, but it’s definitely not the easiest thing he’s ever done.

Trevor’s only got one dart left when out of the corner of his eye, Louis sees someone talking to lady behind the counter. He turns just in time to see the gorgeous guy from early handing over five pounds and getting five darts in return.

Trevor misses his last shot and lets out a grunt of frustration.

Trevor turns to the gorgeous guy, “Good luck, mate. This thing is impossible. I’ve been trying to hit a balloon for a good ten minutes now.”

The guy turns and nods and Louis holds his breath when he chuckles, “Yeah, I was sitting with a couple of my mates on the benches over there,” he points his thumb at a group of guys all staring at them, “and we all saw. They each bet me a tenner a couldn’t hit five balloons. Four guys, forty pounds. I figure it’s worth the try and I won’t be out too much if I fail.”

Trevor nods, “Mind if we watch? Maybe I was doing it wrong.” No doubt Trevor thinks this guy is going to fail. Louis does too, but he’s not going to be so smug about it that he’s actually going to ask to watch. He will watch, of course. 

“Sure, mate, I don’t mind having eyes on me.” He directs that last bit right at Louis.

Trevor notices.

He turns to the balloons and takes maybe two seconds before he throws his first dart.

A balloon pops.

Louis knows his jaw drops a little bit, but even after that lucky shot, he wasn’t expecting what followed.

After every dart that he threw, a balloon popped. Five in a row.

It shouldn’t be a turn on, but it is.

Louis looks over at Trevor, and compared to Trevor’s reaction, Louis might as well have been playing poker. Trevor’s jaw is completely slacked, hand slightly covering it, eyes wide, and face slightly pale.

Louis looks over at group of guys behind this mysterious guy and they’re all laughing their asses off. Niall would fit right in.

Louis turns to the guy in front of him and is met with a large, stuffed giraffe in his face. The giraffe is lowered and the guy in front of him looks him straight in the eyes as he says, “No one as beautiful as you should go home empty handed.”

Louis is stunned for moment, before he slowly reaches out and takes the giraffe, not knowing what else to do.

Louis opens his mouth to speak, but nothing comes out, still at a loss for words.

The gorgeous man in front of him, who he has yet who utter a single word to, who he doesn’t know the name of, who doesn’t know his name, then turns and walks back to his group of friends.

Louis stands there for another moment before he turns to look at Trevor.

The look on Trevor’s face is one of utter defeat, and it almost breaks Louis’s heart. Almost, because this date was going nowhere even before this whole balloon and dart fiasco.

Louis shifts the giraffe to under his left arm and grabs Trevor’s wrist with his right hand. He leads him to a secluded bench away from all the commotion and sits him him down so they can have a nice chat about how they’re probably better off as friends anyway.

Louis really does mean every word. Trevor seem like a nice guy, but they obviously don’t have the right kind of chemistry to date each other. Louis even tells Trevor that he’ll help him find someone else. Louis knows tons of singles in the London area into guys, he can help Trevor find someone.

Louis ends their date with, “I’m way better at being a friend, than a boyfriend.”

Trevor nods and looks back at the festival, “So, are you going to go find that guy? He seemed like was into you, and he was kind of gorgeous.”

Louis shrugs, “Yeah, he was, but that was probably a dare or something. Besides, this place is huge. What are the odds I’d find him again tonight?”

“You never know.”

Louis shakes his head, “No, definitely not tonight. We’re going to finish this date right. You’re going to walk me back to my apartment and we’ll pretend I walk inside and that’s that, but I’m actually going to drive you home. It’s getting dark and you really shouldn’t walk home alone.”

 

Later that night, Louis can’t help but lay in his bed and hug his big giraffe, thinking that was the best date he’s ever been on.

 

Two months later and it’s the beginning of a new semester. Louis is running late for Theater History, but he’s got to piss like mother fucker. He slams open the door to the restroom next to the classroom and it smacks into whoever is on the other side.

Louis immediately cringes on their behalf, cause he knows that’s gotta hurt.

The door closes and when he reaches over to help the person laying on the floor up, he pauses.

It’s him.

The guy on the floor stares with confused eyes for a minute, before he tilts his head, “Oops?”

Louis lets out a short, breathy laugh, “Hi.”

Louis helps him off the floor and they both just stand there for a moment, before Louis breaks the silence, “I really have to pee and we’re kind of in a bathroom.”

“Right, I’ll wait outside.”

Louis nods.

Once Louis exits the bathroom, he’s immediately bombarded, “I hope I didn’t completely ruin your date. From where I was standing, it didn’t look to be going too well, but if I was mistaken, then I’m really sorry. Even if wasn’t going well, I still kind of intruded and that was a bit rude.”

His nervousness makes Louis smile, “I didn’t mind. Trevor might have at the time, but it’s all good now. Actually, if you hadn’t come in, I probably would have ended the date like normal and Trevor and I never would have had an honest talk. We’re pretty good friends now and I even set him up with a friend of mine from the theater department. They’ve been dating for about a month.”

He nods, a relieved smile on his face, “What about you? Are you dating anyone?”

“Why don’t I get your name first?” Louis asks with a flirty smile.

He lets out a little laugh, “Uh, it’s Harry Styles. You?”

Harry Styles. It actually sounds familiar.

Louis racks his brain until he can come up with a reason why Harry’s name sounds familiar.

Shit.

“Louis Tomlinson.”

Harry’s eyebrows shoot up, “You’re Louis Tomlinson? Shit. You’re the TA for Theater History, aren’t you?” Louis nods and Harry continues, “I don’t know if there’s anything in the school handbook about TAs and students, but fuck, I’m just taking that class for a credit. I’ll drop it and find something else.”

Louis grins, “Are you serious? You don’t even know me. I could be a complete dud.”

Harry smirks, “Something tells me you’re not.” Harry glances at the watch on his watch, “Are you assisting in a class that started fifteen minutes ago?”

Louis looks at his phone, “Oh, shit.” He starts to make he way to the lecture hall just a couple meters away when he notices Harry not following. He turns back, “Aren’t you coming?”

“I’m dropping that class.”

Louis shrugs a shoulder, “I tend to sit in the back unless I’m doing the lesson. That way I can see who’s actually earning their participation credits. You can sit with me. If we act like that’s normal, nobody will question it. Professor Jones is so old, he can’t even see the back, let alone who’s sitting with me.”

Harry follows Louis with a hand low on his back as they enter the room, “With an offer like that, who can refuse?”

**Author's Note:**

> I've been writing stories since I was 14 and here I am. 21 and I finally finished one. It's short, but I did it ma. 
> 
> Sorry if if it's shit. I don't really write much anymore, but I might try getting back into it. Maybe I'll get better.  
>  
> 
> Find me on [Tumblr](http://kathrynactually.tumblr.com/).


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